Canada mulls cap on international students

Ottawa, January 15

Canada is looking at the possibility of putting a cap on the number of international students to help reduce the surge in demand for housing and fix the system that has gone out of control, Immigration Minister Marc Miller has said, a move that is likely to affect Indian students.

The remarks by Miller came on Sunday as the federal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faced criticism for welcoming an increasing number of immigrants — both permanent and temporary residents — while the country faces an acute housing shortage.

In an interview, Miller said the federal government would need to have talks with provincial governments “to make sure that the provinces that have not been doing their jobs actually rein in those numbers on a pure volume basis”. “That volume is disconcerting,” Miller said, in reference to the number of international students in Canada. “It’s really a system that has gotten out of control.”

A cap on international students would not be a “one-size-fits-all solution” to housing shortages across Canada, Miller noted. But he did not reveal the size of the reduction the government is planning on making.